AQAGCSE56 resources

AQA GCSE Bengali Past Papers & Mark Schemes

Download free AQA GCSE Bengali (8638) past papers and mark schemes. Listening, speaking, reading, writing. 56 resources from 2018 to 2024.

📅June 2018 – June 2024📄56 resources available✅Free to download

Papers Overview Paper Structure Key Info Key Topics Command Words Grade Boundaries Revision Tips Try AI Tutor ✦

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Type

Year

56 of 56 resources — page 1 of 3

June 2023

4 files

✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – June 2023

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – June 2023

Question Paper

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✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 1 Listening – June 2023

Mark Scheme

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🔊

GCSE Bengali – Sound file: tracked: Paper 1 Listening – June 2023

Audio File

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June 2022

8 files

✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – June 2022

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 3 Reading – June 2022

Question Paper

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GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 1 Listening – June 2022

Question Paper

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GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – June 2022

Question Paper

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 3 Reading – June 2022

Question Paper

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🔊

GCSE Bengali – Sound file: tracked: Paper 1 Listening – June 2022

Audio File

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✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 2 Speaking – June 2022

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 4 Writing – June 2022

Question Paper

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November 2021

7 files

📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 1 Listening – November 2021

Question Paper

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✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – November 2021

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 3 Reading – November 2021

Question Paper

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 1 Listening – November 2021

Question Paper

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – November 2021

Question Paper

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✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 1 Listening – November 2021

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 3 Reading – November 2021

Question Paper

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November 2020

6 files

✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – November 2020

Mark Scheme

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 3 Reading – November 2020

Question Paper

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 1 Listening – November 2020

Question Paper

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📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Higher) : Paper 4 Writing – November 2020

Question Paper

Download

✅

GCSE Bengali – Mark scheme (Higher) : Paper 1 Listening – November 2020

Mark Scheme

Download

📄

GCSE Bengali – Question paper (Foundation) : Paper 3 Reading – November 2020

Question Paper

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About AQA GCSE Bengali

AQA GCSE Bengali (specification code 8638) is one of AQA's heritage language GCSEs, taken predominantly by students who speak Bengali at home. The qualification is assessed across four skills — Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing — each contributing 25% to the final grade. Unlike most other GCSE modern foreign languages, Bengali is available as a single tier, which means all students sit the same papers regardless of target grade. Paper 1 (Listening) tests comprehension of spoken Bengali across a range of contexts and registers, including formal and informal speech. Questions are answered in English. The audio is played by the invigilator and students have a reading period before the audio begins. Paper 2 (Speaking) is conducted by the teacher and covers a role play, a photo card discussion, and a general conversation on the AQA Bengali themes. Themes cover identity and culture, local and global areas, and education and employment. The general conversation allows students to demonstrate the full range of their spoken Bengali. Paper 3 (Reading) includes comprehension tasks and a translation from Bengali into English. Bengali uses its own script (Bangla lipi), so Reading and Writing papers require full literacy in the Bangla script. Paper 4 (Writing) includes structured writing tasks and an extended piece. A translation from English into Bengali is included. Since Bengali has a complex verb system with distinctions of formality (আপনি/তুমি/তুই), tense formation, and noun morphology, Writing at the higher mark bands requires accurate grammatical control.

Exam Paper Structure

Paper 1No calculator

Listening

⏱ Approximately 35 minutes🎯 40 marks📊 25% of grade

Listening comprehension of spoken BengaliEveryday, formal and cultural contexts

Paper 2No calculator

Speaking

⏱ Approximately 12 minutes🎯 60 marks📊 25% of grade

Role playPhoto card discussionGeneral conversation on AQA themes

Paper 3No calculator

Reading

⏱ Approximately 45 minutes🎯 40 marks📊 25% of grade

Reading comprehension in Bangla scriptTranslation from Bengali to English

Paper 4No calculator

Writing

⏱ Approximately 75 minutes🎯 60 marks📊 25% of grade

Structured writing tasks in Bangla scriptExtended writingTranslation from English to Bengali

Key Information

Exam Board	AQA
Specification Code	8638
Qualification	GCSE
Grading Scale	9–1
Assessment Type	4 components: Listening (25%), Speaking (25%), Reading (25%), Writing (25%)
Number Of Papers	4
Exam Duration	Listening: ~35 min. Speaking: ~12 min. Reading: ~45 min. Writing: ~75 min
Available Sessions	June 2018 – June 2024
Total Resources	56

Key Topics in Bengali

Topics you need to know

Listening comprehension of spoken BengaliSpeaking: role play, photo card, general conversationReading in Bangla scriptExtended writing in Bangla scriptTranslation Bengali–English and English–BengaliIdentity and cultureLocal and global areasEducation and employment

Exam Command Words

Command word	What the examiner expects
Answer in English	Write your response in English, not Bengali
Translate into English	Render the Bengali text accurately in English, preserving the full meaning
Translate into Bengali	Render the English text accurately, writing in Bangla script
Write approximately [X] words	Aim for the stated word count in Bangla script for your writing task
Choose ONE	Select a single option from the alternatives provided for the extended writing task
Write the letter	Indicate your answer to a multiple-choice listening question by writing the letter only

Typical Grade Boundaries

Grade	Approximate mark needed
Grade 9	87–97%
Grade 8	77–86%
Grade 7	66–76%
Grade 6	56–65%
Grade 5	46–55%
Grade 4	36–45%
Grade 3	26–35%
Grade 2	16–25%
Grade 1	6–15%

⚠️ Bengali is assessed as a single tier. Grade boundaries reflect the predominantly heritage-speaker candidature. Actual boundaries vary — check AQA's website.

How to Use AQA GCSE Bengali Past Papers Effectively

Bengali GCSE is often taken by heritage speakers, but the exam tests formal, standard Bengali — not necessarily the regional variety or informal register that students use at home. When using past papers, pay particular attention to the formal vocabulary and register expected in the Writing paper. Colloquial forms or dialect-specific vocabulary may not be credited even if they are communicatively equivalent. For the Listening paper, practise with the audio materials that AQA provides. Even for heritage speakers, exam listening tests can be challenging because of speed, topic range, and the need to answer quickly in written English. Practise writing down key words from audio passages as you listen. For Writing, focus on verb accuracy. Bengali verb forms change substantially depending on subject pronoun (আমি, তুমি, আপনি, সে, তারা), tense (past, present, future), and aspect (habitual, continuous). Work through the verb paradigms systematically and test yourself by conjugating verbs in all persons and tenses. The translation tasks (Bengali to English and English to Bengali) reward careful reading. Work sentence by sentence, checking that all nouns, verbs, and grammatical markers are correctly rendered. Pay particular attention to postpositions (which follow the noun in Bengali, unlike English prepositions) and to correct script and spelling in Bangla lipi.

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AQA GCSE Bengali Past Papers & Mark Schemes

Download Past Papers

June 2023

June 2022

November 2021

November 2020

About AQA GCSE Bengali

Exam Paper Structure

Key Information

Key Topics in Bengali

Exam Command Words

Typical Grade Boundaries

How to Use AQA GCSE Bengali Past Papers Effectively

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